Average home price now $500,000?

[Why_Yes_I_Do]

Rents are projected to go up 20+% or so in the area. Purchase qualification has gotten very tight, EX: 745+ credit score requirement. With interest rates creeping up, more first time buyers will be pushed out as well.

A lot of competition from cash buyers which fall into two broad categories: 1) people relocating here from elsewhere with cash in hand, where home prices are much higher and 2) institutional investors looking to convert or capitalize in tangible assets. Some of these investors are buying up whole sub-divisions of new homes or large swaths anyway. Many of these are converting these to rentals with high monthly rates.

Also, valuations have practically doubled from the past 5-6 years. Nearly quadrupled from 10-12 years ago in our area. BTW: Property taxes have joined the fray as per usual.

One dynamic that surprised me to actually see is the rate for a rental can be higher if you want to go beyond 12 months. It used to be if you wanted a 24 month lease, you might pay a little less per month. But this is the first I've seen of charging more per month for > 12 month lease.

Sun City is a little different dynamic, but mainly because the Boomers are retiring en mass and cashing in their existing homes, at the current sales bonanza amounts, similar to the out of state sellers with cash in hand. Plus the obvious age restrictions that are part of Sun City. Millennials or Zoomers need not apply

As someone else pointed out materials are stupid expensive and often in short supply and backlog, equating to longer build times. EX: Soft lumber up 23%, nails/screws (wire metals) up 43% from last year.

Three years ago some builders (Ghehan for example) where cranking out a house in as little 90 days, though 120 was normal. Not even sure what the lead time is now, but I've heard some war stories of builder contracts with price escalation clauses and some builders putting people on a 12 month wait list to even quote a home.

Meanwhile, long term holders of real estate are phat either way if they so choose.

[Aramis13]

Originally Posted by Why_Yes_I_Do

Rents are projected to go up 20+% or so in the area. Purchase qualification has gotten very tight, EX: 745+ credit score requirement. With interest rates creeping up, more first time buyers will be pushed out as well.

A lot of competition from cash buyers which fall into two broad categories: 1) people relocating here from elsewhere with cash in hand, where home prices are much higher and 2) institutional investors looking to convert or capitalize in tangible assets. Some of these investors are buying up whole sub-divisions of new homes or large swaths anyway. Many of these are converting these to rentals with high monthly rates.

Also, valuations have practically doubled from the past 5-6 years. Nearly quadrupled from 10-12 years ago in our area. BTW: Property taxes have joined the fray as per usual.

One dynamic that surprised me to actually see is the rate for a rental can be higher if you want to go beyond 12 months. It used to be if you wanted a 24 month lease, you might pay a little less per month. But this is the first I've seen of charging more per month for > 12 month lease.

Sun City is a little different dynamic, but mainly because the Boomers are retiring en mass and cashing in their existing homes, at the current sales bonanza amounts, similar to the out of state sellers with cash in hand. Plus the obvious age restrictions that are part of Sun City. Millennials or Zoomers need not apply

As someone else pointed out materials are stupid expensive and often in short supply and backlog, equating to longer build times. EX: Soft lumber up 23%, nails/screws (wire metals) up 43% from last year.

Three years ago some builders (Ghehan for example) where cranking out a house in as little 90 days, though 120 was normal. Not even sure what the lead time is now, but I've heard some war stories of builder contracts with price escalation clauses and some builders putting people on a 12 month wait list to even quote a home.

Meanwhile, long term holders of real estate are phat either way if they so choose.

Man, makes you wonder where Austin will go from this? I mean, it’s not affordable to a lot of people as is plus property taxes and the rise in crime which has been ridiculous. Some poor guy woke up this morning with his car filled with bullet holes. That ain’t living. Not for what city demands for cost of living.

As far as the materials stuff, I remember even two years ago if you wanted to fix your roof, that had massive lead times and only got worse after the snowpocalypse from last year. Thought the material shortage was due to the Trump mess with China. I know even furniture stores have a lead time of like 20 weeks because of it.

[Why_Yes_I_Do]

Good points all. I think Austin will weather a storm better than most. It is still a destination and for many of the ones moving in, it's cheaper than what they are leaving behind - hoping that includes the liberal politics and insanity. Plus without a harsh winter normally...

Not sure if you remember the dot com bust, later followed by the housing bubble of 2009. Austin took it in the shorts in 2001, but by the time the 2009 bubble popped, Austin had been on a slow recovery and 2009 was a small blip here.

The thing that pert-near kilt me from the snowpocalypse was tree removal and trimming. Dang! As to tariffs, we need to reverse the leash leads so that Xi gets the collar and we hold the leash, unlike the way it is currently.

Originally Posted by Aramis13

Man, makes you wonder where Austin will go from this? I mean, it’s not affordable to a lot of people as is plus property taxes and the rise in crime which has been ridiculous. Some poor guy woke up this morning with his car filled with bullet holes. That ain’t living. Not for what city demands for cost of living.

As far as the materials stuff, I remember even two years ago if you wanted to fix your roof, that had massive lead times and only got worse after the snowpocalypse from last year. Thought the material shortage was due to the Trump mess with China. I know even furniture stores have a lead time of like 20 weeks because of it.

[SpeedRacerXXX]

Originally Posted by Why_Yes_I_Do

Sun City is a little different dynamic, but mainly because the Boomers are retiring en mass and cashing in their existing homes, at the current sales bonanza amounts, similar to the out of state sellers with cash in hand. Plus the obvious age restrictions that are part of Sun City. Millennials or Zoomers need not apply

I can't believe how many homes are currently under construction at Sun City. I would say maybe 50. Very rough estimate. Purchase a new home today and it will be ready in 10-12 months. You are correct on "cash in hand". I plan to pay cash for a home if we decide to move there.

As an aside, Pulte, the sole builder at Sun City, has upgrade prices that are ridiculous. I would prefer to close with no flooring installed because their upgrade prices on the various floorings is insanely high. Cheaper to have them install the minimum and have an independent flooring company come in, rip out the crap, and install quality flooring, whether it be carpet, tile, or wood.

[winn dixie]

Originally Posted by SpeedRacerXXX

I can't believe how many homes are currently under construction at Sun City. I would say maybe 50. Very rough estimate. Purchase a new home today and it will be ready in 10-12 months. You are correct on "cash in hand". I plan to pay cash for a home if we decide to move there.

As an aside, Pulte, the sole builder at Sun City, has upgrade prices that are ridiculous. I would prefer to close with no flooring installed because their upgrade prices on the various floorings is insanely high. Cheaper to have them install the minimum and have an independent flooring company come in, rip out the crap, and install quality flooring, whether it be carpet, tile, or wood.

Very good point about the upgrades Speed! Its best and cheaper to not add any upgrades and get them done later by contractors. The work will be better. You have a bigger selection to upgrade WHATEVER than the upgrades offered by the home builder. Better quality and cheaper.

[Unique_Carpenter]

Originally Posted by winn dixie

Very good point about the upgrades Speed! Its best and cheaper to not add any upgrades and get them done later by contractors. The work will be better. You have a bigger selection to upgrade WHATEVER than the upgrades offered by the home builder. Better quality and cheaper.

Ah, Winn,
Are you going to get bids on that 2 story bathroom remodel you wanted?

[winn dixie]

Originally Posted by Unique_Carpenter

Ah, Winn,
Are you going to get bids on that 2 story bathroom remodel you wanted?

Nah. You're my guy! But its a two story outhouse!

[Why_Yes_I_Do]

Floor King on Williams Drive in Georgetown is a decent choice to compare flooring. If you can talk smoothly to the old guy there, Ron, try to weasel out of him what they are currently installing in their larger commercial projects. You might be able to get a better price by using those materials as they buy them by the train car load for many big projects. Think high rise condos in the Domain area. That can help with material lead times also. Unfortunately, lead times are ridiculous on labor as well, but they run mostly their own crews out of Austin.

Originally Posted by SpeedRacerXXX

I can't believe how many homes are currently under construction at Sun City. I would say maybe 50. Very rough estimate. Purchase a new home today and it will be ready in 10-12 months. You are correct on "cash in hand". I plan to pay cash for a home if we decide to move there.

As an aside, Pulte, the sole builder at Sun City, has upgrade prices that are ridiculous. I would prefer to close with no flooring installed because their upgrade prices on the various floorings is insanely high. Cheaper to have them install the minimum and have an independent flooring company come in, rip out the crap, and install quality flooring, whether it be carpet, tile, or wood.

[SpeedRacerXXX]

Originally Posted by Why_Yes_I_Do

Floor King on Williams Drive in Georgetown is a decent choice to compare flooring. If you can talk smoothly to the old guy there, Ron, try to weasel out of him what they are currently installing in their larger commercial projects. You might be able to get a better price by using those materials as they buy them by the train car load for many big projects. Think high rise condos in the Domain area. That can help with material lead times also. Unfortunately, lead times are ridiculous on labor as well, but they run mostly their own crews out of Austin.

Thanks for the info. I have a floor guy that I have used twice before to provide flooring for an entire house, both 3,000 sf+. But I am always open to good old competition. I have also seen ads on TV recently that state they will beat competitors pricing by 15%.

[Why_Yes_I_Do]

We talked about sky rocketing prices here and elsewhere, but not in Canada. Apparently they are so bad in Canada that their Parliament won't even tell you or disclose them.

Check out this 3 minute video: Average Price of a house in Ottawa

And we thought intercourse on eccie was difficult...

[SpeedRacerXXX]

Originally Posted by Why_Yes_I_Do

We talked about sky rocketing prices here and elsewhere, but not in Canada. Apparently they are so bad in Canada that their Parliament won't even tell you or disclose them.

Check out this 3 minute video: Average Price of a house in Ottawa

And we thought intercourse on eccie was difficult...

That was rather funny!

Prices at Sun City Georgetown on the home we are looking at will increase $5,000 each of the next 4 Mondays. The tactics they are using to close deals are reprehensible.

[Datrapscallion]

Sheesh. As a pretty young millennial, this thread has reminded me that I absolutely need to stop this hobby if I ever want to have a hope of buying a home.

[Aramis13]

Uff yes. I’m in my mid 30s so barely escaped the massive student dept problem. Paid off my student debt in 3 years to allow me to buy a home. My student debt was 10k though which is a spit compared to todays student debt which you might as well hope to win the lottery to pay it off (I graduated with engineering degree). I honestly feel bad for this generation. Dreams of having nice house at a regular standard of living or regular check is no longer doable in this city.

[Why_Yes_I_Do]

I feel for those stuck with outrageous student debt by schools that sold them a bill of goods. But uhhmmm, not so much for the ones that did not do a basic calculus of the ROI of the degree they they sought. $100K for a law degree is worthwhile, typically. $100K for gender studies, not so much.

[Why_Yes_I_Do]

Maybe 24/7/365 would be necessary to afford a down payment

Originally Posted by Datrapscallion

Sheesh. As a pretty young millennial, this thread has reminded me that I absolutely need to stop this hobby if I ever want to have a hope of buying a home.